Cancer is considered to be a serious and pervasive disease. The National Cancer Institute has estimated that in the United States alone, 1 in 3 people will be afflicted with cancer during their lifetime. Moreover approximately 50% to 60% of people contracting cancer will eventually die from the disease.
One particularly prevalent form of cancer, especially among women, is breast cancer. The incidence of breast cancer, a leading cause of death in women, has been gradually increasing in the United States over the last thirty years. In 1997, it was estimated that 181,000 new cases were reported in the U.S., and that 44,000 people would die of breast cancer (Parker et al, 1997, CA Cancer J. Clin. 47:5-27; Chu et al, 1996, J. Nat. Cancer Inst. 88:1571-1579). Similarly, lung cancer is the second most common cause of cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths for both men and women in the United States, with an estimated 171,000 new cases in 2003. The five-year survival rate among all lung cancer patients, regardless of the stage of disease at diagnosis, is only 13%.
In 2003, about 25,400 new cases of ovarian cancer were diagnosed according to estimates from the American Cancer Society (ACS). Among U.S. women, ovarian cancer is the seventh most common cancer and the fifth leading cause of cancer death after lung and bronchus, breast, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers. The ACS also estimated that there were approximately 105,500 new cases of colon cancer and 42,000 new cases of rectal cancer in 2003 in the United States.
In spite of considerable research into therapies, these and other cancers remain difficult to diagnose and treat effectively. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved methods for detecting and treating such cancers. The present invention fulfills these needs and further provides novel cell lines and compositions comprising said cell lines.